“It would take a skilled cabinet maker or joiner around 45 minutes to route out the holes for locks and hinges by hand. With Alphacam, it takes around five minutes to program them and another five minutes for the machining. When we’re working on a number of doors, each one only takes five minutes, as the program is already set up.”

And he says the corresponding routing on the door linings is a perfect match every time. “Using Alphacam is not only much faster, but we know it’s always going to be completely accurate.”

The company also provides an assembly service, where clients send their doors and ironmongery to them. “We carry out the horizontal routing, install the locks and hinges and send the completed doors and linings to site.”

He decided to set up what he believes is the unique service after experiencing at first hand how long it takes to route out mortice locks and hinges on site. “As a joiner myself I know how tedious the process is, and when I began to research setting up a system to carry out the work as a subcontractor for builders and architects I couldn’t find any other company doing it.

“Large building companies carry out the cutting for themselves, but I’ve not come across anyone other than us providing it as a subcontract service.”

He says successful horizontal routing requires considerable experience, as it involves pinpoint accuracy at a position that is floating off the bed of the CNC router. “But with Alphacam we can program the height of the horizontal position to get an exact finish.”

His choice of router also speeds up the process – they have a 3-axis Italian Tornado Bulleri 3721 machine tool with carousel toolchanger. “We needed a machine with a large bed as we work with 2050 x 2800 mm MFC Jumbo board.”

The router is currently programmed with Alphacam Standard, but they are intending to invest in a 5-axis router later this year, which will mean upgrading the software to Alphacam Ultimate.

And he says they would not be able to provide the service without Alphacam. “In fact, without Alphacam, we wouldn’t have a business at all. It’s so quick and easy to program. The old saying ‘time is money’ is very true, and Alphacam saves us both.”

As well as the horizontal routing service they also produce a range of cabinetry and staircases, and nest all their kitchen and bedroom furniture using the software’s powerful nesting functionality.

“Alphacam cuts each full MFC Jumbo sheet sheet in eight minutes, with all the cam and dowel holes and features, so what’s coming off the CNC machine is ready for the edge bander and assembly.”

They also use Alphacam Aspire for engraving and signwriting, and, again, he says they could not provide that part of their service without Alphacam. “We can see the transitions immediately on screen, along with the machining simulation, which helps us achieve our goal quickly and accurately.”

Another of their aims is to move purely to manufacturing, as he says Alphacam carries out the work of several employees in their niche market. “We can produce 60 doors in eight hours, whereas a cabinet maker could perhaps do 12 doors in a day at a push. And we can guarantee 100 per cent accuracy every time, which is impossible by hand.”
The software also helps produce an accurate quote for their full range of woodworking products. “When we receive an enquiry I program the component in Alphacam which gives an accurate machining time.”

In conclusion, Sylwester Przybylski says Tomasz Valentine Ltd, operating with eight employees out of a 600-square-metre workshop in Park Royal, London, shows that Alphacam is not just for big manufacturers. “As a small company it makes a massive difference to our profitability, and actually makes the difference that keeps us in business.
“We need to be accurate, fast and competitive. And that’s what Alphacam gives us.”